UK property developer London Square opens first international branch in response to surge in demand for property
- The developer has been active in the Asian market for over a decade, and sees its new premises in Hong Kong as the ideal location to tap into demand
- The 12-year-old company is confident of steady international interest in living and investing in the British capital
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United Kingdom property developer London Square has just celebrated its 12th year of operation with a £2.5 billion (US$2.9 billion) pipeline of new homes in Greater London, and the opening of an international head office in Hong Kong – its first outside London.
“We have been exposed to the Asian and Hong Kong market since 2010, but we have remotely relied so much on our international agents for that. It was important we were present and visible for all our customers,” says Naomi Minegishi, head of international sales for London Square, who has relocated to Hong Kong to establish an international sales team.
“The London market is very resilient, and a lot of investors know that. But there’s a lot of information out there,” says Minegishi. “Due to the travel restrictions, we wanted to bring London to Hong Kong, so that overseas purchasers can expect the same high level of customer service as UK buyers. It’s about the touch and feel. We have showroom bathrooms and kitchens here, plus material samples, so you can see, for example, exactly what kitchen materials we’re using. What was important for us was that when you walked through these doors, it felt like London Square – and it felt like London.”
The Hong Kong office is designed to be a “customer experience gallery”. Potential buyers can join seminars, take part in interactive virtual tours, see drone footage of locations in London and take part in virtual home demonstrations via video conference with agents simultaneously in the UK and Hong Kong. London Square has introduced tours that help buyers visualise and experience their properties in real time. Buyers can also browse colour palettes, touch the worktops and tiles, explore storage and cabinet options and see first-hand the quality of finish of their new homes.
“We wanted to show the international market the commitment that we have, and to let our purchasers and partners know that we’re here to stay,” says Minegishi.
Neighbourhoods within easy reach of Central London
Focusing on prime locations with good transportation links within the M25 motorway that encircles the capital, London Square’s developments span many parts of the city.
Among these are on-trend commuter neighbourhoods such as Croydon, which is said to be more attractive to younger purchasers and first-time buyers keen to get on the property ladder. Central London can be reached in under 30 minutes.
Similarly, Watford offers a collection of stylish one- and two-bedroom apartments just 29 minutes by train from Central London’s Euston Tube station.
There is also the more upscale London Square Nine Elms, close to the United States Embassy in a prestigious district of Central London and within the Linear Park regeneration area. London Square Nine Elms is set for completion within the next three years.
Each development is overseen by an in-house technical team, which appoints architects and designers to ensure each property has its own individual stamp and character. “I don’t think you would ever stand in front of a London Square development and say ‘that’s a London Square site’, because it shouldn’t ever look the same,” says Jo McDonagh, the company’s group sales and marketing director. “There are no cookie-cutter styles; they are all individual.”
Examples of these developments can be viewed at London Square’s Hong Kong office, with showroom kitchens and bathrooms built to the specifications of their UK counterparts.
While offering bespoke and high-quality fixtures, each London Square development places an emphasis on liveability, ensuring ample storage space and bedrooms large enough to comfortably fit a king-sized bed. The showrooms reflect this – with spaces decorated to attract a well-travelled, art-loving target demographic.
Growing Hong Kong appetite for larger UK homes
London Square has seen a 64 per cent increase of overseas buyers during January to September 2022 compared to the same period in 2019, with buyers predominantly from Asia, reflecting the growth of the company and the increase in the number of homes available for sale. “We have also seen a big increase in purchases by BNO [British National Overseas] passport holders, particularly in the housing schemes,” says McDonagh.
According to Minegishi, Hong Kong buyers in particular are looking for quality, space and stability, with an emphasis on a neighbourhood’s proximity to higher-education options, good connectivity and access to parks and other green spaces.
“Since Covid, people’s lifestyles have changed – the way they go to work, the way they do their shopping,” says Minegishi. “Last year, we saw a lot of purchasers buying into housing schemes in Surrey, a leafy suburb an hour away from London, with nice schools nearby. We’ve seen a pent-up demand as people wanted more space where they could live and work.”
To quell any concerns or culture shock that new buyers might have, London Square provides a comprehensive home demonstration service and a two-year customer care service warranty. During the personalised home demonstration, purchasers receive guidance on maintaining their home, with the added peace of mind provided by a two-year warranty should any defects arise. This is in addition to a 10-year structural warranty.
“A good example is at Tadworth Gardens [just to the south of London]. We’ve had Hong Kong buyers move from an apartment in Hong Kong to a house with a big garden, and they didn’t know how to maintain it because they’ve never had to. But they’re excited,” says McDonagh.
With the launch of its Hong Kong office, London Square hopes to extend its customer relationships. It has seen repeat business from landlords and investors with multiple London Square homes, which reinforces its high level of after-sales customer care, says McDonagh.
The business of ‘placemaking’
Having added new branches to its business model in the last year, London Square also offers commercial spaces, joint ventures with local authorities and build-to-rent (BTR) schemes. It is also a registered provider of shared ownership properties – a low-income way to purchase property where customers can buy a portion of the product and rent the rest.
But the golden thread that ties all these business areas together is “placemaking”, referring to the crafting of a neighbourhood by considering every aspect. “We don’t just build a tower,” explains Minegishi. “We focus a lot on landscaping, and host a lot of residents’ events, where we encourage them to talk and connect.”
London Square’s name is inspired by the city’s historic public squares that were designed to promote a sense of community, so it is natural that bringing people together is part of the company’s key business focus.
“By having the capacity to create every element of a development ourselves, we know the destiny, and we know what our customers can expect – the commercial, the residential, the BTR and the social aspect,” says McDonagh. “We consider how every element in the mixed-tenure ecosystem will impact the other one. It makes us proud to leave a community behind.”
